Github Actions: Build NextJS Project in Different Directory - next.js

Question

I'm wondering how I would go about building my project in a sibling directory to the existing repo. The reason for this is that I will occasionally get errors when builds fail and leave something messed up in the build directory. It seems like it would be far more ideal to build in a separate directory, then if the build succeeds, move all files to the actual running directory and restart PM2. I know I can use working-directory in the .yml, but I'm not sure how exactly to write this to ensure that there won't be any downtime. If this isn't a good solution and anyone has any other ideas, I am open to them. Here's my current deploy file:
name: Staging Deploy
on:
push:
branches: [ "main" ]
jobs:
build:
runs-on: Staging
environment: Staging
strategy:
matrix:
node-version: [16.x]
# See supported Node.js release schedule at https://nodejs.org/en/about/releases/
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout#v3
- name: Use Node.js ${{ matrix.node-version }}
uses: actions/setup-node#v3
with:
node-version: ${{ matrix.node-version }}
cache: 'npm'
- run: npm install
- name: Create env file
run: |
touch .env
...create env file with repo secrets
- run: npm run build --if-present
- name: Restart PM2
id: restart_pm2
run: pm2 reload reponame
continue-on-error: true
- name: Start PM2
if: steps.restart_pm2.outcome != 'success'
run: pm2 start pm2.config.js```

Answer 1

Modify the pm2 reload step to reload the app from the running directory. You can do this by specifying the path to the running directory as the working directory for the reload step. For example:
name: Restart PM2
id: restart_pm2
run: pm2 reload reponame
working-directory: .
continue-on-error: true
By following these steps, you should be able to build your project in a separate directory and move the built files to the running directory without any downtime. It's a good idea to test this process on a staging environment before deploying to production to ensure that everything is working as expected.